Chicago Part 4: Eleven City Diner

It's been about a million years since I got back from Chicago. But I have this last post that I didn't get around to...so here it is, the final Chicago info.

A block away from Bongo Room, right near our hotel, was another great breakfast place.

Eleven City Diner



Because the restaurant claimed to be like an old school New York Jewish deli, I was hesitant. Why would I leave New York to go to Chicago to eat in at New York place. But we felt like Bongo Room back to back wasn't a good idea.

Good decision on our part. I started with a Bloody Mary. Always a good way to start a Sunday.



They made it with a bottled mix, which was fine, but the garnish of salami and cheese, along with enormous olives, bumped this cocktail up to very good.



I had a traditional bagel and lox plate. It had all the right parts and so was very good. I've had better bagels, and probably better lox, but it all worked.



The husband had corned beef hash with a fried egg. This really was excellent.



Sometimes you have to go to another city to remember why you love the city you came from.

Chicago Part 3a: mk

I can't write much now because I am so late for work. I already missed my 1st train and now I am squeezing this in before I catch the next one. I will embellish with words later.

These are from a great restaurant in Chicago called mk. The food was better then my camera work - still haven't mastered the lowlight shot in a restaurant.

Chicago Part 2: Gibsons

How can you go to a Chicago and not eat steak?

The answer was obvious to us: you don't!

As mentioned in the previous post, we research all dining options before a vacation. Our search for steakhouses turned out to be a tough one. We have a pretty strict criteria with steak houses and also we are tough critics coming from New York, where steakhouses are around just about every corner.

There was no clear consensus on the Internet. So we had to go with what seemed to have the most characteristics of the the kind of place we like best: old school, big cocktails, not much on the menu but steak, the place where captains of industry have a regular table and have three martini lunches with cigars.

Gibson's was the front runner in these categories.



Our waiter made me a little angry at the start of the meal. First, when I said I was deciding what to get to drink - he said, "I'll get you a cosmo - you'll like that."

Yes, I am a girl. Yes, I did get gussied up. But still, I don't like when people assume I like girlie things - or order for me. It is a bit of the feminist in me.

I smiled nicely and said, actually I will have an Old Fashioned with Maker's Mark. I wanted to say, bring me a double whisky neat - just to really throw him off. But I wanted to remember the meal, plus I don't really like whisky without ice and some cherries, but that is besides the point. So here was my Old Fashioned which was delicious.



The menu was real steakhouse fare. The requisite cuts of meat, the one fish dish, the creamed spinach, you get the point. The waiters also bring over a platter of steaks and a lobster tail (enormous) to give you an idea of the different cuts.

This bothered me a little. I guess because it seemed unnecessary and a little gimmicky. But whatever.



So the next thing our waiter did that made me angry was not even ask me what I wanted but say, "I know you are having the filet mignon" and then go to the husband for his order. Grrrr.

Now, there is nothing wrong with a filet, but it isn't my go to choice in a steak house. At a french restaurant with a red wine cream sauce, yes. But not at a place where the beef is on its own. I hated that he assumed I wanted the filet and even more, I hate the way he ordered it for me. Poor Elvis (that was his name) he didn't mean any harm - I spared him this rant. Instead, I smiled and I politely said I would rather have the bone in rib eye, medium rare.

The steaks came with a salad which was drowning in blue cheese. This was fine, but I didn't want to eat too much and ruin my appetite. Oh and the bread in the background was great. Wine was also very good, not spectacular, but very good. Elvis recommended something very reasonable (can't remember what it was, sorry). It was definitely a cabernet, but that is all I can recall.



We also ordered creamed spinach which was as good as any I've had. And we got a potato that looked like it ate another potato. It was huge and restuffed. Not something I would typically order, but it came highly recommended and it didn't disappoint.



The steak itself was perfectly cooked and immensely flavorful. The best part was the char on the outside of the steak. I didn't need to add any salt or pepper, which is rare for me at a SH. Even if everything else had been terrible, the steak alone was good enough to deem this meal a success. I apologize for the carcass picture, but you love it, don't you?



Here is the dessert menu. We laughed at the thought of it - and then covered our eyes in horror when we saw what people were receiving when they ordered a "piece" of carrot cake. It was about 1/2 of a total cake, I am not exaggerating. Fun at first I am sure, and then a little ridiculous.



Elvis won me over by the end and he and I were fast friends. The place had real charm, everybody was well fed and taken care of, and I would definitely recommend Gibson's if you are looking for a good old-fashioned steak house. It was worth every "overpriced in a steakhouse kind of way" penny.

That said, it didn't come close to Lugers....but I'm not sure anything will.

P.S. We also ordered a crab salad with avocado. Fine, but totally forgettable.

Chicago Part 1: Bongo Room

There are many reasons to love Chicago. At no point before this most recent visit did I think breakfast would rank high among them.

We arrived early on Saturday morning, 8am. We had been up for 4 hours so it was essentially lunch time - a real, full meal was necessary.

A little googling before we left told us that there was a highly recommended breakfast place right by our hotel. And yes, we google, chowhound, citysearch, and blogsearch every meal before we go on vacation. Sometimes I worry that it can take the spontaneity out of a trip - but when it works, there are no regrets.

The Bongo Room was such a hit, the Husband and I both went back for our last meals before our respective flights home.




The pancakes were said to be THE thing to order. This is a good time to tell you all, that apparently, I am much smarter in Chicago. There are some cities where I turn into an idiot, I can't order well, I can't find my way around, there is just something off. But in Chicago, I was on my game - and this meal was just the beginning, more on this tomorrow.

So back to the pancakes, there were ridiculous choices to be had with chocolate sauces, and fresh berries, and vanilla creams. It was hard to choose. But our research beforehand served us well.

Though not on the menu, we were tipped off that you could order a single pancake instead of the full order, a good way to sample more then one and balance the meal off with something from the salty side of the menu.

Here was our order:

Eggs Benedict with spinach pesto, fresh spinach, and thick cut smoked bacon.

One crushed oreo cookie flapjack with warm vanilla bean cream sauce. Topped with chocolate creme anglaise.

One blueberry pancake with vanilla creme anglaise and blueberry coulis.

Really, only pictures can do this meal justice.

The spinach made this seem somewhat healthy....


They brought us a full order of the oreo-banana pancakes by accident. Yes, we felt ridiculous with all this food - my well laid plan of one pancake foiled. But it did make for a better picture and sadly we ate more then one of the pancakes.



Yes, they were as rich and silly as they looked. It was like 12 year olds created the menu...really smart 12 year olds.



On my last visit, I ordered a single oreo banana pancake - my justification for returning (other then the obvious deliciousness reason) was that as soon as I got back to NY I would eat healthier.

hahahaha.

Grand Central Oyster Bar

The husband and I are both suckers for old New York. Which is why, I think, we refuse to give up on Grand Central Oyster Bar. We have a tradition, that once a year we will go to GCOB for oysters, soup, and a couple of beers. This order is usually pretty safe - other menu items are pretty inconsistent. But the oysters and soup are typically very good and when you add in the atmosphere (we only eat at the bar) - it is usually great.



So that is what we did a few weeks ago. And sadly, it may be the last time. Everything was very mediocre. The soup wasn't bad, just nothing special and a little gloopy. The beer we ended up with was pretty good but that was after being told that they were out of the first two we asked for. They were also out of crab cakes, so we ended up with fried shrimp with a remoulade - they were fine. Here's what the oysters looked like. Some were uneatably huge. I guess we could have asked for small ones - we just asked for whatever was freshest.



I haven't given up completely - but it isn't a yearly event that I am looking forward to as much as I once did.

Boston Highlights

Back from Boston. Swamped at work. So quick post.

1. Friday night in Boston, checked into Westin lounged on heavenly bed. Had to drag myself off for dinner. Friend and I went for a Guinness at an Irish bar nearby. For some reason, Guinness always tastes a little better in Boston. Then on to a splurge at Abe & Louie's for steaks. I love having a girl friend who isn't afraid to eat steaks with me....and creamed spinach. I had a rib eye which is hard to mess up - and they didn't. The spinach was as good as I have ever had. The grilled asparagus was also good, but as you know creamed vegetables go down a little easier for me. A highlight was the bottle of Flora Springs Cabernet that we split. Delicious, but pretty much everything I've had from this vineyard is great.



2. Saturday went to dinner at cousins in nearby town. Loved the cream cheese, wasabi, and soy sauce hors d'ouvre that she had out. And the "ugly cake" for dessert (her description, not mine) was lemony and sweet and a great topper to a great meal.

3. Sunday I came home to a houseful of football fans just in time to partake in their order of Carl's steaks. I need to buy more Frank's hotsauce - it really is the best for steak sandwiches. As you probably know, this is what makes Buffalo chicken wings taste as fantastic as they do. Which reminds me, I haven't had wings in ages. Who's up for wings this week?